Olympic Soccer Wrap: What Clubs and Leagues did the Goals come from?

This is a breakdown of all the offensive goals scored in the 2008 Olympic soccer tournament with the goal scorers and the clubs the players have moved/returned to after the tournament ended. 22 out of the 52 goal scorers came from clubs in Italy, England, and Spain.

Australia
1 - Ruben Zadkovich - Derby County (England)

Serbia
1 - Slobodan Rajković - FC Twente (Netherlands; Loan: from Chelsea)
1 - Miljan Mrdaković - Shandong Luneng (China)
1 - Đorđe Rakić - Red Bull Salzburg (Austria)

Cote D'Ivoire
2 - Sekou Cissé - Roda JC (Netherlands)
2 - Salomon Kalou - Chelsea (England)
1 - Gervinho - Le Mans (France)

Argentina
2 - Lionel Messi - FC Barcelona (Spain)
2 - Ángel Di María - SL Benfica (Portugal)
2 - Ezequiel Lavezzi - Napoli (Italy)
2 - Sergio Agüero - Atlético Madrid (Spain)
1 - Lautaro Acosta - Sevilla FC (Spain)
1 - Diego Buonanotte - River Plate (Argentina)
1 - Juan Roman Riquelme - Boca Juniors (Argentina)

USA
2 - Sacha Kljestan - Chivas USA (USA)
1 - Stuart Holden - Houston Dynamo (USA)
1 - Jozy Altidore - Villarreal (Spain)

Netherlands
2 - Gerald Sibon - SC Heerenveen (Netherlands)
1 - Ryan Babel - Liverpool (England)
1 - Otman Bakkal - FC Twente (Netherlands; Loan: from PSV Eindhoven)

Nigeria
3 - Victor Obinna - Chievo (Italy)
2 - Chinedu Obasi - 1899 Hoffenheim (Germany)
1 - Victor Anichebe - Everton (England)
1 - Promise Isaac - Trabzonspor (Turkey)
1 - Olubayo Adefemi - Hapoel Bnei Lod (Israel)
1 - Chibuzor Okonkwo - Bayelsa United (Nigeria)
1 - Peter Odemwingie - Lokomotiv Moscow (Russia)

Japan
1 - Yohei Toyoda - Montedio Yamagata (Japan; Loan: from Grampus Eight)

Brazil
2 - Diego - Werder Bremen (Germany)
2 - Jô - Manchester City (England)
2 - Thiago Neves - Fluminense (Brazil)
2 - Ronaldinho - AC Milan (Italy)
2 - Rafael Sóbis - Real Betis (Spain)
1 - Hernanes - São Paulo (Brazil)
1 - Anderson - Manchester United (England)
1 - Alexandre Pato - AC Milan (Italy)
1 - Marcelo - Real Madrid (Spain)

Belgium
3 - Moussa Dembélé - AZ Alkmaar (Netherlands)
2 - Kevin Mirallas - Lille (France)
2 - Faris Haroun - Germinal Beerschot (Belgium)
1 - Laurent Ciman - Club Brugge (Belgium)

China
1 - Dong Fangzhuo - Manchester United (England)

New Zealand
1 - Jeremy Brocki - Hawke's Bay United (New Zealand)

Italy
4 - Giuseppe Rossi - Villarreal (Spain)
1 - Sebastian Giovinco - Juventus (Italy)
1 - Tommaso Rocchi - Lazio (Italy)
1 - Riccardo Montolivo - Fiorentina (Italy)
1 - Robert Acquafresca - Cagliari (Italy)

Korea
1 - Park Chu-Young - FC Seoul (Korea)
1 - Kim Dong-Jin - Zenit St. Petersburg (Russia)

Cameroon
1 - Georges Mandjeck - VfB Stuttgart (Germany)
1 - Stéphane Mbia - Stade Rennais (France)



Nations where the Goal Scorers play Club Soccer:
8 - Italy
7 - England
7 - Spain
5 - Netherlands
3 - France
3 - Germany
2 - Argentina
2 - Belgium
2 - Brazil
2 - Russia
2 - USA
1 - China
1 - Austria
1 - Israel
1 - Japan
1 - Korea
1 - New Zealand
1 - Nigeria
1 - Portugal
1 - Turkey


Spain's Villarreal was the top scoring club with 4 goals from Giuseppe Rossi (Top Scorer of the Tournament) and 1 goal from Jozy Altidore. who were both born in New Jersey.

Belgium and Club Brugge's Laurent Ciman made one brief 15 minute appearance in the entire tournament and scored a consolation goal against Nigeria in the Semi Finals.

Leading scorer Giuseppe Rossi scored 3 of his tournament leading 4 goals from the penalty spot.

Nigeria and Chievo's impressive Victor Obinna was second with 3 goals but also led the tournament in assists with 3.

Overage Players with Goals:
Gerald Sibon (2); Ronaldinho (2); Juan Roman Riquelme (1); Tommaso Rocchi (1); Peter Odemwingie (1)

Beijing Olympic Players in Home Nation Domestic Leagues

These are all of the players on the Olympic Soccer rosters that play their club soccer in the country they represent. It varies quite a bit, from 17 out of 18 Italian players based in Italy to only 2 players from Cameroon playing in their home domestic league. This post came about because during the US games I noticed that it was almost MLS (USA) vs. J-League (Japan) and Eredivisie (Netherlands) based teams with a few exceptions.

GROUP A

Argentina - 17%
Luciano Fabián Monzón - Boca Juniors
Juan Román Riquelme - Boca Juniors
Diego Buonanotte - River Plate

Australia - 50%
Tando Velaphi - Perth Glory
Nikolai Topor-Stanley - Perth Glory
Nikita Rukavytsya - Perth Glory
Jade North - Newcastle Jets
Stuart Musialik - Sydney FC
Mark Bridge - Sydney FC
Kristian Sarkies - Adelaide United
Billy Celeski - Melbourne Victory
Archie Thompson - Melbourne Victory

Côte d'Ivoire - 28%
Vincent de Paul Angban - ASEC Mimosas
Serge Wawa - ASEC Mimosas
Antoine N'Gossan - ASEC Mimosas
Christian Fabrice Okoua - Africa Sports
Mamadou Bagayoko - Africa Sports

Serbia - 44%
Saša Stamenković - Napredak Kruševac
Predrag Pavlović - Napredak Kruševac
Marko Jovanović - Partizan
Ljubomir Fejsa - Partizan
Zoran Tošić - Partizan
Nenad Tomović - Red Star Belgrade
Andrija Kaluđerović - OFK Beograd
Dušan Tadić - Vojvodina

GROUP B

Japan - 89%
Shusaku Nichikawa - Oita Trinita
Masato Morishige - Oita Trinita
Kaito Yamamoto - Shimizu S-Pulse
Takuya Honda - Shimizu S-Pulse
Shinji Okazaki - Shimizu S-Pulse
Maya Yoshida - Nagoya Grampus
Hiroki Mizumoto - Kyoto Sanga FC
Yuto Nagatomo - FC Tokyo
Yohei Kajiyama - FC Tokyo
Atsuto Uchida - Kashima Antlers
Michihiro Yasuda - Gamba Osaka
Hajime Hosogai - Urawa Red Diamonds
Hiroyuki Taniguchi - Kawasaki Frontale
Shinji Kagawa - Cerezo Osaka
Yohei Toyoda - Montedio Yamagata
Tadanari Lee - Kashiwa Reysol

Netherlands - 72%
Piet Velthuizen - Vitesse
Kenneth Vermeer - Ajax
Urby Emanuelson - Ajax
Dirk Marcellis - PSV
Erik Pieters - PSV
Otman Bakkal - PSV
Kew Jaliens - AZ
Kees Luyckx - AZ
Calvin Jong-a-Pin - Heerenveen
Gerald Sibon - Heerenveen
Roy Beerens - Heerenveen
Jonathan de Guzman - Feyenoord
Roy Makaay - Feyenoord

Nigeria - 28%
Ambruse Vanzekin - Akwa United
Ikechukwu Ezenwa - Ocean Boys
Chibuzor Okonkwo - Bayelsa United FC
Monday James - Bayelsa United FC
Efe Ambrose - Kaduna United

USA - 44%
Chris Seitz - Real Salt Lake
Patrick Ianni - Houston Dynamo
Stuart Holden - Houston Dynamo
Michael Parkhurst - New England Revolution
Dax McCarty - FC Dallas
Robbie Rogers - Columbus Crew
Sacha Kljestan - Chivas USA
Brian McBride - Chicago Fire


Group C

Belgium - 39%
Logan Bailly - Racing Genk
Faris Haroun - Racing Genk
Laurent Ciman - Club Brugge
Jeroen Simaeys - Club Brugge
Marouane Fellaini - Standard Liège
Landry Mulemo - Standard Liège
Stijn De Smet - Cercle Brugge

Brazil - 33%
Renan - International
Alex Silva - São Paulo
Hernanes - São Paulo
Thiago Silva - Fluminense
Thiago Neves - Fluminense
Ramires - Cruzeiro

China PR - 89%
Qiu Shengjiong - Shanghai Shenhua
Li Weifeng - Shanghai Shenhua
Shen Longyuan - Shanghai Shenhua
Gao Lin - Shanghai Shenhua
Liu Zhenli - Qingdao Jonoon
Jiang Ning - Qingdao Jonoon
Tan Wangsong - Tianjin Teda
Hao Junmin - Tianjin Teda
Feng Xiaoting - Dalian Shide
Zhao Xuri - Dalian Shide
Yuan Weiwei - Shandong Luneng
Zhou Haibin - Shandong Luneng
Han Peng - Shandong Luneng
Cui Peng - Shandong Luneng
Wan Houliang - Shaanxi Chanba
Chen Tao - Changsha Ginde

New Zealand - 61%
Jacob Spoonley - Wellington Phoenix (A-League)
Aaron Scott - Wellington Phoenix (A-League)
Liam Little - Otago United
Ian Hogg - Hawke's Bay United
Sam Jenkins - Hawke's Bay United
Cole Peverly - Hawke's Bay United
Jeremy Brockie - Hawke's Bay United
Sam Messam - Hawke's Bay United
Cole Tinkler - Team Wellington
Daniel Ellensohn - Team Wellington
Shaun van Rooyen - Waikato FC

GROUP D

Cameroon - 11%
Armour Patrick Tignyemb - Tonnerre Yaoundé
Paul Rolland Bebey Kingué - Les Astres

Honduras - 83%
Kevin Hernandez - Victoria
Obed Enamorado - Vida
Quiarol Arzu - Platense
Marvin Sánchez - Platense
David Molina - Motagua
Rigoberto Padilla - Motagua
Jorge Claros - Motagua
Luis Rodas - Motagua
Jefferson Bernardez - Motagua
Luis López - Motagua
Erick Norales - Marathon
David Álvarez - Marathon
Andres Morales - Real España
Carlos Pavón - Real España
Ramon Nunez - Olimpia

Italy - 94%
Emiliano Viviano - Brescia
Andrea Consigli - Atalanta
Marco Motta - Udinese
Andrea Coda - Udinese
Paolo De Ceglie - Juventus
Claudio Marchisio - Juventus
Sebastian Giovinco - Juventus
Domenico Criscito - Genoa
Salvatore Bocchetti - Genoa
Lorenzo De Silvestri - Lazio
Tommaso Rocchi - Lazio
Antonio Nocerino - Palermo
Riccardo Montolivo - Fiorentina
Daniele Dessena - Sampdoria
Robert Acquafresca - Cagliari
Ignazio Abate - Torino
Luca Cigarini - Parma

Korea Republic - 89%
Jung Sung-Ryong - Seongnam Ilhwa
Kim Jung-Woo - Seongnam Ilhwa
Song Yoo-Geol - Incheon United
Shin Kwang-Hoon - Pohang Steelers
Kang Min-Soo - Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors
Kim Jin-Kyu - Busan l'Park
Kim Kun-Hoan - Kyun Hee University
Oh Jang-Eun - Ulsan Hyundai
Lee Chung-Yong - FC Seoul
Ki Sung-Yong - FC Seoul
Park Chu-Young - FC Seoul
Kim Seung-Yong - Gwangju Sangmu Phoenix
Baek Ji-Hoon - Suwon Samsung Bluewings
Shin Young-Rok - Suwon Samsung Bluewings
Lee Keun-Ho - Daegu FC


Percent from Home Domestic Leagues:
94% - Italy
89% - China PR
89% - Korea Republic
89% - Japan
83% - Honduras
72% - Netherlands
61% - New Zealand
50% - Australia
44% - Serbia
44% - USA
39% - Belgium
33% - Brazil
28% - Côte d'Ivoire
28% - Nigeria
17% - Argentina
11% - Cameroon

Most Represented Clubs (Home Nation Players only)
6 - Motagua (Honduras)
5 - Hawke's Bay United (New Zealand)
4 - Shanghai Shenhua (China)
4 - Shandong Luneng (China)
3 - Heerenveen (Netherlands)
3 - PSV Eindhoven (Netherlands)
3 - Shimizu S-Pulse (Japan)
3 - Partizan (Serbia)
3 - ASEC Mimosas (Cote d'Ivoire)
3 - Perth Glory (Australia)

Italian Serie A Players at the Beijing Olympics

Argentina
Ezequiel Lavezzi - Napoli

Serbia
Aleksandar Kolarov - Lazio
Nikola Gulan - Fiorentina

Japan
Takayuki Morimoto - Catania

Nigeria
Victor Nsofor Obinna - Chievo

USA
Danny Szetela - Brescia (Serie B)

Belgium
Anthony Vanden Borre - Genoa

Brazil
Ronaldinho - AC Milan
Alexandre Pato - AC Milan

Italy
Imiliano Viviano - Brescia (Serie B)
Andrea Consigli - Atalanta
Marco Motta - Udineses
Andrea Coda - Udinese
Paolo De Ceglie - Juventus
Claudio Marchisio - Juventus
Sebastian Giovinco - Juventus
Domenico Criscito - Genoa
Salvatore Bocchetti - Genoa
Lorenzo De Silvestri - Lazio
Tommaso Rocchi - Lazio
Antonio Nocerino - Palermo
Luca Cigarini - Parma (Serie B)
Riccardo Motolivo - Fiorentina
Daniele Dessena - Sampdoria
Robert Acquafresca - Cagliari
Ignazio Abate - Torino


Bundesliga Players
La Liga Players
Premiership Players

German Bundesliga Players at the Beijing Olympics

Argentina
José Ernesto Sosa - Bayern Munich

Australia
Matthew Spiranovic - FC Nurnberg (2.bundesliga)

Serbia
Gojko Kačar - Hertha Berlin
Duško Tošić - Werder Bremen

Nigeria
Chinedu Ogbuke - TSG 1899 Hoffenheim
Solomon Okoronkwo - Hertha Berlin

Belgium
Vincent Kompany - Hamburg

Brazil
Rafinha - Schalke 04
Breno - Bayern Munich
Diego - Werder Bremen

Cameroon
Georges Mandjeck - Stuttgart
Alain Junior Ollé Ollé - SC Freiburg (2.bundesliga)


La Liga Players
Serie A Players
Premiership Players

La Liga Players at the Beijing Olympics

This is a listing of all the Spanish La Liga players on the 2008 Beijing Olympic soccer rosters.

Group A

Argentina
GK Oscar Ustari - Getafe CF
DF Pablo Zabaleta - RCD Espanyol
DF Ezequiel Garay - Real Madrid
DF Federico Fazio - Sevilla FC
MF Fernando Gago - Real Madrid
MF Ever Banega - Valencia CF
FW Sergio Aguero - Atletico Madrid
FW Lionel Messi - FC Barcelona
FW Lautaro Acosta - Sevilla FC

Serbia
MF Milan Smiljanić - RCD Espanyol

Group B

Netherlands
MF Hedwiges Maduro - Valencia
MF Royston Drenthe - Real Madrid

USA
FW Jozy Altidore - Villarreal

Group C

Belgium
FW Tom De Mul - Sevilla

Brazil
GK Diego - UD Almeria
DF Marcelo - Real Madrid
FW Rafael Sóbis - Real Betis

Group D

Italy
FW Giuseppe Rossi - Villarreal


Premiership Players
Bundesliga Players
Serie A Players

Premiership Players at the Beijing Olympics

This is a list of all of the English Premier League players on the Olympic soccer rosters.

Argentina
Javier Mascherano - Liverpool

Australia
Adrian Leijer - Fulham

Cote d'Ivoire
Salomon Kalou - Chelsea

Netherlands
Gianni Zuiverloon - West Bromwich Albion
Ryan Babel - Liverpool

Nigeria
Victor Anichebe - Everton

Brazil
Anderson - Manchester United
Lucas - Liverpool
Jô - Manchester City

Honduras
Hendry Thomas - Wigan Athletic

Cameroon
Alexandre Song - Arsenal
Franck Songo'o - Portsmouth

China
Dong Fangzhuo - Manchester United

New Zealand
Ryan Nelsen - Blackburn Rovers

USA
Brad Guzan - Aston Villa


La Liga Players
Serie A Players
Bundesliga Players

Olympic Soccer Medals and Appearances

All-Time Olympic Appearances (at least 10)

15 - Italy
14 - USA
11 - France
10 - Brazil
10 - Egypt
10 - Yugoslavia

Most Olympic Medals Won (at least 4)

5 - Hungary
5 - Yugoslavia
5 - Soviet Union
4 - Denmark
4 - East Germany

Olympics where the Home Nation won the Gold:

1992 - Spain (Barcelona)
1920 - Belgium (Antwerp)
1908 - Great Britain (London)

Medals by Region:

53 - Europe
10 - South America
3 - Africa
3 - North America
1 - Asia

Last Medal for 2008 Olympic Participants

Group A
2004 - Argentina

Group B
1920 - Netherlands
1904 - USA
1996 - Nigeria
1968 - Japan

Group C
1920 - Belgium
1996 - Brazil

Group D
2004 - Italy
2000 - Cameroon

Former Gold Medal Winners in 2008 Olympic's

2004 - Argentina
2000 - Cameroon
1996 - Nigeria
1936 - Italy
1920 - Belgium

2008 Olympic Soccer Overage Players

These are all of the overage players that have been selected to the men's Olympic soccer rosters.




Group A
Argentina
DF - Nicolas Pareja - RSC Anderlecht (24)
MF - Javier Mascherano - Liverpool (24)
MF - Juan Roman Riquelme - Boca Juniors (30)

Australia
DF - Jade North - Newcastle Jets (26)
DF - David Carney - Sheffield United (24)
FW - Archie Thompson - Melbourne Victory (29)

Serbia
GK - Vladimir Stojkovic - Sporting CP (24)
MF - Aleksandar Živkovi - Shandong Luneng (31)

Cote d'Ivoire
NONE

Group B
Netherlands
FW - Roy Makaay - Feyenoord (33)
FW - Gerald Sibon - Heerenveen (34)
DF - Kew Jaliens - AZ Alkmaar (29)

USA
FW - Brian McBride - free agent (36)
GK - Brad Guzan - Aston Villa (23)
DF - Michael Parkhurst - New England Revolution (24)

Nigeria
FW - Peter Odemwingie - Lokomotiv Moscow (26)
GK - Vincent Enyeama - Hapoel Tel-Aviv (25)
FW - Ikechukwu Uche - Getafe CF (24)

Japan
MF - Yasuhito Endo - Gamba Osaka (28)

Group C
China
DF - Li Weifeng - Shanghai Shenhua (29)
MF - Zheng Zhi - Charlton Athletic (27)
FW - Han Peng - Shandong Luneng (24)

Belgium
DF - Sepp De Roover - FC Groningen (24)
MF - Maarten Martens - AZ Alkmaar (24)

Brazil
MF - Ronaldinho - Barcelona (28)
FW - Robinho - Real Madrid (24)
DF - Thiago Silva - Fluminense (23)

New Zealand
DF - Ryan Nelson - Blackburn Rovers (30)
MF - Simon Elliot - None (34)
FW - Chris Killen - Celtic FC (26)

Group D
Honduras
DF - Samuel Caballero - Changchun Yatai (33)
MF - Emil Martinez - Shanghai Shenua (25)
FW - Carlos Pavon - Real Espana (34)

Italy
FW - Tommaso Rocchi - Lazio (30)

South Korea
MF - Lee Ho - Zenit St. Petersburg (23)
DF - Kim Dongjin - Zenit St. Petersburg (26)
MF - Kim Jungwoo - Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma (26)

Cameroon
DF - Antonio Ghomsy - Messina (24)
FW - Gustave Bebbe - Ankaragücü (26)



Total players over 30: 10
Oldest Player: Brian McBride (36)

Key Players on 2008 Olympic Soccer Teams - Group C and D

This post is part 2 (part 1) of a compilation of key players listed at the FIFA Mens Olympic Soccer website from each qualified Olympic nation. I've filtered through all of the seperate team pages and have provided links to each FIFA key player's wikipedia page along with listing their current club and position.


Group C

China
Dong Fangzhuo - FW, Manchester United
Zheng Zhi - MF, Charlton Athletic
Feng Xiaoting - DF, Dalian Shide

New Zealand
Steven Old - DF, Wellington Phoenix
Jeremy Brockie - FW, Hawke's Bay United
Costa Barbarouses - FW, Wellington Phoenix

Brazil
Lucas - MF, Liverpool FC
Alexandre Pato - FW, AC Milan
Marcelo - LB, Real Madrid

Belgium
Steven Defour - MF, Standard Liege
Vincent Kompany - DF, Hamburger SV
Moussa Dembele - FW, AZ Alkmaar


Group D

Korea Republic
Park Chu-Young - FW/MF, FC Seoul
Lee Keun-Ho - MF, Daegu FC
Kim Jin-Kyu - DF, FC Seoul

Cameroon
Andre Bikey - RB, Reading FC
Stephane Mbia - MF, Stade Rennais
Alexander Song - MF/DF, Arsenal FC

Honduras
Hendry Thomas - MF, Olimpia
Jefferson Bernardez - FW, Motagua
Georgie Welcome - FW, No Club

Italy
Giuseppe Rossi - FW, Villareal
Marco Motta - DF, Torino
Claudio Marchisio - MF, Empoli

Key Players on 2008 Olympic Soccer Teams - Group A and B

This post is a compilation of the key players listed at the FIFA Mens Olympic Soccer website from each qualified Olympic nation. I've filtered through all of the seperate team pages and have provided links to each FIFA key player's wikipedia page along with listing their current club and position. This post is for Group A and B, I'll be posting group C and D in a seperate post.


Group A

Cote d'Ivoire
Salomon Kalou - WF, Chelsea FC
Gervinho - FW, Le Mans
Sekou Cisse - FW, Roda JC

Argentina
Federico Fazio - DF, Sevilla
Ever Banega - MF, Valencia
Lautaro Acosta - MF/FW, Lanus

Australia
Mark Milligan - MF/DF, Sydney FC
Nathan Burns - FW, Adelaide United
Bruce Djite - FW, Adelaide United

Serbia
Aleksandar Kolarov - DF, Lazio
Stefan Babovic - MF, FC Nantes
Zoran Tosic - MF, FK Partizan


Group B

Netherlands
Ryan Babel - LW/RW, Liverpool FC
Royston Drenthe - LW/LB, Real Madrid
Hedwiges Maduro - MF, Valencia

Nigeria
Victor Anichebe - FW, Everton FC
John Obi Mikel - MF, Chelsea FC
Taye Taiwo - LB, Marseille

Japan
Sota Hirayama - FW, FC Tokyo
Takuya Honda - MF, Shimizu S-Pulse
Atsuto Uchida - DF, Kashima Antlers

USA
Freddy Adu - MF, Benfica
Jozy Altidore - FW, Red Bull New York
Jonathan Spector - DF, West Ham United

Olympic Soccer Facts

I've always found the Olympics interesting and in soccer the games have historically been very unpredictable. There are many nations that have never played a World Cup game, but have qualified for the Olympics, and the traditional soccer powers don't always do as well in the Games. Here are some details about Olympic Soccer.



Up until and including the Seoul 1988 Olympics, the event essentially used full national teams without restrictions. Since the 1992 games in Barcelona the event has been a U23 event. Since the Atlanta games in 1996, nations are also allowed to pick 3 "wild card" players that are over the age of 23.


Number of Qualification Spots per Continent - Beijing 2008:

4 - Europe
4 - Asia
3 - Africa
2 - North America
2 - South America
1 - Oceania

China automatically gets one of the Asia spots

Final Four Nations in Recent Olympic Games:
Gold medal winners in Bold

2004: Argentina, Paraguay, Italy, Iraq
2000: Cameroon, Spain, Chile, USA
1996: Nigeria, Argentina, Brazil, Portugal
1992: Spain, Poland, Ghana, Australia
1988: USSR, Brazil, West Germany, Italy
1984: France, Brazil, Yugoslavia, Italy
1980: Czechoslovakia, West Germany, USSR, Yugoslavia
1976: East Germany, Poland, USSR, Brazil



Soccer "Powers" that have appeared in past Olympics:
Listed by current FIFA rankings

192 - Afghanistan - 1948
171 - Chinese Taipei - 1960
165 - Malaysia - 1972
161 - Netherlands Antilles - 1952
157 - Burma (Myanmar) - 1972
127 - El Salvador - 1968
107 - Sudan - 1972
103 - Syria - 1980


Between 1952 and 1972, Hungary was without question the powerhouse of Olympic soccer. They picked up 3 golds, 1 silver, and 1 bronze medal out of that stretch of 6 olympic games.

Since 1980, only Brazil, Argentina, and Spain have won at least 2 medals of any color.

Cameroon and Nigeria make it 2 African nations with Gold Medal wins in the last 3 Olympic competitions.


For some interesting discussions regarding the US team selection, check out these posts at Soccer By Ives and Soccer Insider.